Matt Veldman, a starting tight end at North Dakota State University and a major contributor to the 2011 NCAA Division I FCS National Championship club, signed a free agent contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League in late April. It's a path his father, ex-Dragon Gregg Veldman, traveled nearly 30 years earlier.
A four-year letterman and captain of the Bison as a senior, Matt Veldman appeared in 42 games during his collegiate career and started all 15 during the Bison title run last season. He caught a career high 26 passes for 331 yards and earned second team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors as a senior. He was a semifinalist for the National Football Foundation's Campbell Award and also received the Missouri Valley Football Conference's President's Council and Commissioner's Academic Excellence Awards.
A native of Becker, Veldman was a finalist for the “Mr. Football” award as a senior and was a consensus first-team all-state selection. He has two brothers, Ryan and Mike, and one sister, Lauren, and his uncles Steve and Mark Veldman both played football for the University of North Dakota.
“Now, it's real," said the younger Veldman. "It is a good spot for me. Jacksonville provided me with the best chance to be able to compete right away."
Gregg Veldman was a fixture on the Moorhead State offensive line at tight end and served as captain of the 1982 Dragons. A transfer from the University of Minnesota, Veldman earned the Dr. Geib Award as the Most Dedicated Player as a senior.
In 1981 Veldman and the Dragons finished the regular season unbeaten (10-0-1) and ranked number one in NAIA Division I, but their dreams of a national championship evaporated with a 14-13 playoff loss at Pittsburg (KS) State.
“I still think about that loss, and I told Matt after they won that this makes up for what happened to me 30 years ago,” Gregg said.
In 1982 the Dragons repeated as Northern Intercollegiate Conference champs and made a second straight appearance in the post-season playoffs, falling at Mesa College 43-20 in Gregg's senior season. He later signed a free agent contract with the Dallas Cowboys but was released during pre-season camp after suffering a leg injury.
A Minnesota All-State selection at South St. Paul High School, Veldman joined the Gopher football program but later transferred to Moorhead State to play for the Dragons and coach Ross Fortier.
“Moorhead State had recruited me out of high school, and I remember how impressed I was,” he said. “When I decided to go elsewhere it was the only school I thought of. It created lifelong friends and lifelong memories.”
“Ross had a system and he stuck with it,” he said. “It was the way he conducted himself and his coaching. There was great consistency. He was thoroughly prepared; there would be no highs or lows.”
